Exercise DOES Work: And Dr Michael Mosley's Not Denying It

A headline suggesting: 'You'll never lose weight going to the gym and exercise DOESN'T boost your mood' according to an EXPERT is probably enough to put many of us off exercising for good.

Particularly for those of us not keen on it in the first place. But unfortunately for the gym-dodgers out there, it doesn't really tell the whole story.

The expert in question, Dr Michael Mosley, isn't saying exercise is a waste of time, even though the out of context quote would suggest as much.

Actually, he's saying that more intense exercise - albeit less of it - could be more beneficial than longer, slower types of working out. And that without a healthy diet, you're not going to see the benefit.

Well tell us something we don't know.

HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) has been massive for the past two years and plenty of research has come out showing that shorter bursts of aerobic exercise will give you better results in terms of fitness and body composition.

And the drive towards resistance exercise and weight training, in combination with aerobic exercise is to help people lose weight because, yes, running alone probably won't do it.

Mosley, the man behind the rise of the 5:2 diet and author the Fast Diet books, spoke about high intensity exercise, weight loss and diet on ITV's This Morning programme, and explained some of the reasons we don't always see the benefit of slogging it out in the gym.

The Daily Mail took this one step further, suggesting that exercising is useless.

Mosley's key points were:

- The gym doesn't burn as many calories as you'd think so it's great for keeping weight off but on its own, it's unlikely to make you lose weight.

- Genetics play a big role and some people don't lose weight as easily as others, which can demoralise them when they're working out hard.

- Allowing yourself a 'treat' after the gym completely negates the work you put in.

Dr Mosley also doubts the mental benefits of exercise, saying he doesn't personally feel an emotional boost and suggesting that endorphins actually don't make it to the brain because the molecules are 'too big'.

But countless studies that link physical activity with improved mental state and lower risk of depression can't be ignored. And how about the anecdotal evidence? The vast majority of people would agree that they feel way better after working out, running or playing sport. We certainly do.

But the way many of us incorporate exercise into our lives could be the reason we're not seeing the benefits. A low intensity jog followed by a cake as a treat still tips the scale towards more calories eaten than burned.

"We get this 'I've been to the gym, so I can eat what I want' mentality", explains Dr Mosley.

"Going to the gym will burn calories - but way less than we think.

"'1lb of fat is 3,500 calories - and fat is more energy-dense than dynamite - so to burn 1lb of fat you'd need to run about 38 miles."

And that's exactly why eating a healthy diet is so vital too. If you're actively trying to lose weight you need to cut your calories so you're burning more than you're consuming. But when you realise that exercise doesn't burn vast amounts, you'll understand why cutting what you put into your mouth is so important. It has to work in combination.

What exercise does do is improve your heart and lung capacity, get your blood moving, keep your hormones in check and boost your metabolism - all of which will keep your body working as it should and allow you to eat well without piling on the pounds.

Weight training has also been proven to speed up metabolism both after a workout and also when the body is at rest as muscle burns more calories than fat.

So it's not adding up to 'give up on the exercise' after all.

But we're not totally behind everything Dr Mosely has to say. The 5:2 diet has worked for many people but for a huge number of us it's not a suitable diet. Women especially, should avoid it as it can mess with our hormones and according to nutritionist and women's health expert Dr Marilyn Glenville, even lead to putting weight on.

"The 5.2 just doesn't work for women because our hormones are more complex. We need to keep blood sugar level stable constantly and that means eating small amounts regularly, so going for two days without this really isn't helpful as it can cause cravings and over-compensation," she says.

So what have we learned from all this? Well, really it's what we've been saying all along. Regular exercise with high intensity bouts, combined with healthy eating will allow you to lose weight and keep it off.

And exercise has also been linked to lower risk of all sorts of diseases from various cancers to diabetes, heart disease, Alzheimer's and arthritis. So it's definitely not worth giving up.

It really is that simple.

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